Governor Park Wansu of Gyeongnam, Hard at Work Harvesting Soft Potatoes

Volunteers Step Up to Help with Farm Work in Gimhae

Governor Park Wansu of Gyeongnam Province headed to Saengnim-myeon, Gimhae City on the 14th to support farms facing a shortage of labor during the busy spring farming season.

Governor Park harvested potatoes by operating a potato harvester attached to a tractor in a potato field in Saengnim-myeon.

He was joined by Hong Taeyong, Mayor of Gimhae, Cho Geunsu, Head of the Gyeongnam Branch of Nonghyup, the Association of Housewives Who Love Their Hometown, Gimhae YMCA, relevant government officials, and about 100 others, to pack the harvested potatoes into boxes for collection.

Park Wansu, Governor of Gyeongnam Province (center), and Hong Taeyong, Mayor of Gimhae, are showing harvested potatoes. Photo by Gyeongnam Provincial Government

Governor Park stated, "While the mechanization rate of rice farming nationwide is 99.3%, the mechanization rate of field crop farming is only 63.3%," and added, "To increase the mechanization rate of field crops, it is necessary to develop suitable farming methods and prioritize the introduction of machinery that farms need."

He continued, "Gyeongnam Province will continue to promote the expansion of agricultural machinery supply projects to resolve labor shortages on farms and boost productivity."

He also said, "Rural volunteer work during times of greater labor demand will be a welcome relief for our farmers," and urged, "I hope related organizations will continue to participate actively."

Governor Park Wansu of Gyeongnam Province is operating a harvester to dig up potatoes during the potato harvesting season.
[Photo by Gyeongnam Provincial Government]

To address labor shortages on farms, Gyeongnam Province is implementing the 'Agricultural Machinery Supply Expansion Project' this year with a total investment of 33.3 billion won, supplying medium and large agricultural machinery preferred by each farm.

The period from May 1 to June 30 has been designated as the 'Spring Farming Season Rural Volunteer Work Promotion Period,' and promotion centers have been established at the provincial, city/county, and city/county Nonghyup branch levels to provide additional manpower support.

Residents who wish to participate in volunteer work can apply through the Rural Volunteer Work Promotion Centers at their respective city/county or Nonghyup branch offices.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.